The Texas Legislature was originally supposed to conclude in late May, but as we approach mid-July, Governor Abbott has called his second special session of the 88th Legislature. On May 29, Governor Abbott called his first special session focused on property tax reform. Since there has been no conclusion to the property tax saga, Abbott has fulfilled his promise to call special sessions until “property tax cut legislation reaches [his] desk” and called a second special session immediately following the first.
This time, Governor Abbott means business. On June 7, he tweeted about the 40 different homeowner, consumer, & business groups that support his plan to eliminate property taxes. In his proclamation announcing the second special session, he focused on the two major goals surrounding this property tax reform legislation. First, Governor Abbott wants to reach an agreement that hopefully eliminates all school property taxes in the State of Texas. Second, he wants to create lasting tax cuts to provide maximum tax relief for Texans. With these two goals in mind, the Governor started the second special session at 3 PM on June 27.
The stalemate between the House and Senate is the cause of the backup on this initiative. While headway has been made, there has been no conclusion to the ongoing debate between the legislative bodies. The proposed property tax relief would only cover school property tax; individual counties would still be responsible for homestead exemptions and other property tax avenues. The hope is to use the massive budget surplus to give back money to Texans across the state.
Stay tuned for more updates on the property tax reform bills headed to the governor’s desk.
Written by Catherine Cunningham